Weekend Box Office Report: ‘Lucy’ Takes Down the Mighty ‘Hercules’

This weekend saw two movies named after their lead characters go head-to-head. In one corner, you have 'Lucy.' In the other, 'Hercules.' If you asked the average person who would win in a battle between Dwayne Johnson and Scarlett Johansson, most would probably side with the guy whose nickname is "The Rock." But the box office this weekend went in a completely different direction.

Film

Weekend

Per Screen

1

Lucy

$44,025,000

$13,875

$44,025,000

2

Hercules

$29,000,000

$8,067

$29,000,000

3

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

$16,400,000 (-54.8)

$4,471

$172,089,000

4

The Purge: Anarchy

$9,896,000 (-66.8)

$3,465

$51,272,000

5

Planes: Fire and Rescue

$9,303,000 (-46.9)

$2,423

$35,121,000

6

Sex Tape

$5,975,000 (-59.1)

$1,951

$26,877,000

7

Transformers: Age of Extinction

$4,600,000 (-53.3)

$1,858

$236,352,000

8

And So It Goes

$4,552,000

$2,582

$4,552,000

9

Tammy

$3,400,000 (-54.1)

$1,327

$78,147,000

10

A Most Wanted Man

$2,717,000

$7,526

$2,717,000

'Lucy' surpassed all expectations with its $44 million opening. This is not only the biggest non-Marvel opening for Johansson, but the biggest opening for director Luc Besson, who has been making action movies for quite some time now. These are the kinds of numbers that make Marvel's decision to not make a Black Widow solo movie all the more baffling. More importantly, it establishes Johansson as a star in her own right, capable of opening a completely original movie. We'll see if the movie has legs in the weeks ahead, but this is an excellent start.

Right below it, 'Hercules' underperformed. $29 million is a solid opening for a lot of movies, but it's not solid for a very expensive action epic starring one of the most widely liked guys in Hollywood. We could go on a tangent about how modern audiences may not respond to a character like Hercules anymore, but the answer is far more simple: this movie was sold poorly and no one was excited about it. End of story. The final gross may not be disastrous, but it's not going to do much for anyone involved.

In third place, 'Dawn of the Planet of the Apes' continued its climb toward $200 million, grossing $16 million for a $172 million total. It's already handily outgrossed its predecessor, but it also cost more, so everything is pretty much where it needs to be. The big question now is whether or not it'll keep its momentum and effortlessly cross that next big milestone or if it'll pull a 'Godzilla' or 'Amazing Spider-Man 2' and struggle.

In fourth place, 'The Purge: Anarchy' took the entirely expected "horror movie second weekend drop" and plunged 66%. Still, that $9 million weekend gross isn't awful, especially when you consider that it's made $51 million so far, putting it within spitting distance of the first film. Yes, there will most certainly be a 'Purge 3.'

In fifth place, 'Planes: Fire and Rescue' did the box office equivalent of a shrug, grossing $9 million for a $35 million total. That's not great, but the first 'Planes' showed off strong legs that kept it in theaters for a long time. This one may still pull it off.

But 'Sex Tape' is not pulling it off. The comedy tumbled in its second weekend, grossing $5 million for a $26 million total. At this rate, it probably won't even break even. And while we're on the subject of movies massively underperforming, 'Transformers: Age of Extinction' is literally struggling to hit $250 million, which is particularly awful for a franchise that made $400 million look easy a few years ago.